Tourist sent home at Devon border after driving from Birmingham

A tourist has been sent back to Birmingham after being caught by police driving to the West Country in a motorhome during the lockdown.

Officers stopped the driver on the motorway near the Somerset-Devon border on Friday (March 27) as part of new spot checks being carried out to limit the spread of coronavirus.

They said the driver’s actions were “not in the spirit of fighting the virus” and told them to return to Birmingham, where they had come from.

Tough new rules were brought in by the Prime Minister last week, stating you should only leave your home for essential work, shopping, exercise or for a medical reason.

Legislation was also introduced which allows police to enforce those rules with on-the-spot fines or arrest, and they can use reasonable force to ensure members of the public comply with an order to disperse.

Others took to social media to express their shock at the tourist's bold move to get away from Birmingham - one of the areas in the UK with the highest number of Covid-19 cases.

One wrote: "Must come from a different planet or something, cloud cuckoo land."

For the latest updates on coronavirus in the West Country, including case numbers, event cancellations and venue closures, click here.

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